2014-15 NBA Season Preview: Detroit Pistons

Welcome to theScore's preview of the 2014-15 Detroit Pistons. Visit our preseason hub for previews of all 30 NBA teams.

Detroit Pistons

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2013-14

The Detroit Pistons took a huge gamble last offseason by inking a pair of talented yet mercurial free agents in point guard Brandon Jennings and power forward Josh Smith. The thinking behind the moves was to acquire talent, regardless of fit. Chemistry would follow suit.

Except the pieces didn't fit and the Pistons fell short of the playoffs for the fifth straight season as a result.

Smith was forced to play small forward alongside frontcourt incumbents Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond, which detracted from Smith's strengths (shot-blocking, post-ups) and exacerbated his weaknesses (lack of foot-speed, poor three-point shooting). The result was that Smith posted career-lows across a number of categories. He did launch the second-most triples on the team, but he sank just 26.4 percent of them.

Jennings, on the other hand, posted yet another mediocre season. He improved as a passer, but his decision-making remained sub-par.

Their presence also took shots and opportunities away from the Pistons' promising duo on the interior. Drummond found more minutes but didn't show marked improvements by way of having a jumpshot or the ability to sink free-throws. Monroe plateaued, posting virtually the same statline for a third straight season.

Offseason Roundup

The Pistons' summer opened with a much-needed change in the front office. Longtime GM Joe Dumars was finally ousted after years of mismanagement, replaced by Stan Van Gundy and de facto GM Jeff Bower. Van Gundy will assume head coaching responsibilities and hold final say over basketball decisions, while Bower will handle day-to-day responsibilities.

With the new structure in place, the Pistons proceeded to restock their bench. Without significant cap space to add a new starter, Van Gundy opted for an assortment of veterans to bolster perimeter shooting instead. D.J. Augustin, Caron Butler, and Jodie Meeks were all signed with this in mind.

The most impactful move during the offseason, however, was Monroe's decision to eschew long-term security in favor of signing a qualifying offer. In doing so, Monroe assumed a measure of risk in exchange for the freedom to explore unrestricted free agency next offseason.

Additions

PG D.J. Augustin (2/$6M)
SF Caron Butler (2/$9M)
SG Jodie Meeks (3/$18.8M)
SF Cartier Martin (undisclosed)
C Aaron Gray (undisclosed)
*PF Greg Monroe (1/$5.5M qualifying offer)
C Hasheem Thabeet (undisclosed)

*Re-signed

Departures

PG Chauncey Billups (retired)
C Josh Harrellson (waived)
PG Peyton Siva (waived)
SG Rodney Stuckey (free agency)
PF Charlie Villanueva (free agency)

2014 Draft

SF Spencer Dinwiddie (2nd round, 38th overall)

Having lost their first-round pick to the Charlotte Hornets in a deal consummated two years ago, the Pistons had only their second-round pick in which to add youth to their roster. 

They opted to gamble on Dinwiddie with their lone pick. Dinwiddie is a talented guard with good athleticism, size, and shooting ability, but his season was cut short last season by an ACL tear. The Pistons are fairly deep at the guard spots so Dinwiddie is unlikely to see much playing time beyond a fifth-guard role at first. Van Gundy, though, has a solid track record when it comes to developing players.

Starting 5

• PG Brandon Jennings
• SG Jodie Meeks
• SF Caron Butler
• PF Greg Monroe
• C Andre Drummond

Breakout Player: Andre Drummond

The similarities between Drummond and Dwight Howard are endless. Both players are physically gifted behemoths with the ability to dominate the paint and on the glass. Very few players have the unique combination of size, power, quickness and explosiveness that Drummond and Howard possess.

The list of similarities will now grow to include tutelage under the same head coach in Stan Van Gundy. In Orlando, Van Gundy designed a team with Howard in the middle. The plan on defense was to funnel drives towards Howard in the paint; the plan on offense was to surround him with shooters so as to give Howard room to operate. The strategy helped Howard blossom into one of the best players in the league.

Drummond isn't yet at Howard's level defensively, but the gameplan with shooters is already starting to crystallize. Shooters like Augustin and Meeks should help open up space for Drummond to attack in the pick-and-roll, much in the same way Hedo Turkoglu and Ryan Anderson once did for Howard in Orlando. If ever there were a coach to help Drummond develop, it's Van Gundy.

Season Expectations

It's hard to tack expectations onto the Pistons because their season hinges on whether or not they can sort out the clutter in their frontcourt. The trio of Monroe, Smith and Drummond in the frontcourt simply doesn't work. One of the three will need to move to the bench.

An alternate solution would be to shed a player via trade. The Pistons would prefer to move Smith, but he carries an exorbitant price tag, and Detroit won't trade its franchise cornerstone in Drummond, so that leaves Monroe. However, Monroe reserves the right to nix any trade as per his decision to sign the qualifying offer.

Ultimately, if everything goes right, the Pistons could sneak into the playoffs with a low seed. The more likely scenario, however, is for Detroit to make major moves to rebuild their roster, which carries along the by-product of racking up losses. 

1 to Follow on Social Media

If you're interested in seeing shirtless selfies, follow Brandon Jennings on Twitter. 

Here's an example:

And another:

And another: